Hola!
So, this chapter is pretty much just the video. A lot of it is stuff written in the books, but I threw in some scenes of my own in there. :)
So, I'm trying to think of...ya, know...a PLOT to this story, besides Lena + Zack. Like, a quest of some sort, but I don't want it to be a PJO repeat, ya know? If ya got any suggestions, let me know!
School was uneventful today. Blech. Hey, does anyone else's teachers make you play that game with the gameboard and it has things like 'Find some one with blue eyes' 'FInd someone who has lived out of state' and such and you have to find someone that it is true to and have them sign it? I'm a Freshman and I've been playing it since, like, second grade.
OMIGOD! SO MANY VIRTUAL HUGS TO GIVE!
Sending to: The Avian-Olympian, Sam Joy Jackson, China91, Persia Jackson, Meepmeep123, Complicated-Little-Jellie, and Guest.
Replies to reviews:
The A-O: Thanks! As a OBSESSIVE reader I know how important the image in your head is an dI strive to give that. And your about to find out IN DETAIL what is on the video. And feeling better enough to be going to school...win/lose situation I guess. ;)
Sam Joy Jackson: AW! THANKS! CAPS LOCK IS JUST SO ADDICTING! AND I HOPE I DON'T STOP MAKING GREAT CHAPTERS, AS I'M SURE YOU ALL HOPE TOO. And thanks SO MUCH for the compliment on being a good writer.
Meepmeep123: Here is the next update! And I just love how you guys made 'Zena'! :DDD
C-L-J: I figured it was complicated, giving the name. ;) And thanks!
Guest: Omigod! Thank you! I will, with such great reviewers!
These reviews make my LIFE guys! Thanks so much!
Hey, if you also wanna read my story Here We Are, I Guess and give me continuation suggestions there, that'd be great. I've gotten so many requests to continue it, but I'm having writers block, which, if not dealt with swiftly, is a story killer! *GASP*
Seriously guys, I've had the song Absolutely (Story of a Girl) on repeat. SUCH A PERFECT SONG FOR HOW ZACK FEELS!
Disclaimer: yeah, yeah, yeah
READ ON!
I held the disk, staring at it, as if I expected it to tell me what was on it. Before I lost the courage I threw it in the DVD player that came with the room.
It loaded for what seemed like years, then my mothers face appeared.
She was smiling, yet looked sad. My guess was that this was taken sometime after we had gone on the run. The background looked vaguely familiar. All of the apartments and motels I had stayed in had all blurred together.
"Hello, Silena." My mom said, somehow making that one word, my name, sound so full of love. "If your watching this, I'm afraid your father and I have met our end. I really hope you never see this. I wish that your father could make this with me, but he's so adamant about being positive. I barely got him to write that letter. I wish I could be as positive as he is that nothing will go wrong, but..." she sighed, "but unfortunately I just can't. I think it's because I'm a daughter of Athena. I'm too rational." She sighed again. "It breaks my heart to think I won't be with you, but just in case, I decided to make this, as well as give you some photos. For both the pictures and the videos you'll see, I had to contact a lot of people to get them. Call in a lot of favors, but I wanted you to have these tokens. What you're about to see is a bunch of videos taken while we were at camp, and taken afterwards."
The screen faded to black.
Then it lightened again, but just a little. The camera person appeared to be in what looked like to be a library?
"Annabeth," the camera man spoke. "Annabeth, it's storming like crazy out there."
I saw a disheveled, twelve-year old version of my mother step into the camera view. "That's impossible. It never storms." I realized they must be in the Athena cabin at Camp Half-Blood.
Lightening struck and everything outside illuminated. There seemed to be something going on by a large pine tree. The camera man took a step back and my mom furrowed her eyebrows.
"What was that?" he asked.
My mom shook her head. "I don't know, but I'm going to find Chiron." She then ran outside.
"Wait! Annabeth!"
"Stay there!" she called back.
The screen faded again. When it returned, the camera appeared to be in the woods, off to the edge of a clearing. In the clearing you could see a creek and an awkward boy standing there. I realized that it was my father.
I saw some buff people approach him. Very swiftly it turned into battle. At first, my father looked like he was going to be killed, but then he was shoved into the creek.
It turned around there.
My father came up with a strong confidence and struck back. In the end, he had bested his opponents, though he had been cut. Afterwards a man came running holding a flag. A bunch of people started cheering. I saw my mother appear next to my father. My dad seemed annoyed, but my mom didn't seem that bothered...at first. Then she noticed something on my dads arms. She frowned and said something. My father frowned, but stepped out of the creek, when he collapsed. My mother caught him but she appeared to be saying some unpleasant things under her breath.
Just then, a hellhound attacked. It pounced on my father and tore at his armor. Luckily, Chiron shot it with an arrow.
Everyone seemed surprised and a beefy girl claimed that it was all my father's fault. My mom said something to Chiron, then helped guide my father back into the water. His wounds began to heal. He started to what looked like apologize. Then the glowing trident appeared above his head. My fathers face was confused and slightly scared it looked like. Everyone kneeled. Chirons next words were clearly audible.
"Hail, Perseus Jackson, Son of the Sea God."
Next was a bleak, short image of my father being dragged by nymphs. Someone shouted for help and I briefly saw my mother run up to him just after he passed out.
Next was a chariot race. My parents were on opposite teams, my father seeming to be paired with a cyclops. The race started normal, but took a dark turn as metal birds attacked. My parents went off in one direction, returning a few minutes later with a music player. It played awful music and the birds were shot down.
The scenes went on for another forty five minutes.
My father arguing with a girl with spiky black hair. I briefly recalled her as Thalia. SHe shot him, he blasted her with water. It ended when a mummy showed up, I believed that was their old oracle.
My parents, the cyclops, and Grover descending into a hole in a rock, I believed to be the labrynth.
Brief fight scenes at a battle at camp.
The next scene, I'm not sure when it took place. After their battle at camp, yet before the first Great Prophecy was my guess.
My mom was walking backwards, trying to get away from the camera.
"Say it!" The girl behind the camera said.
"No, Silena! Go away!" My mom insisted, sounding annoyed. I figured the camera-gal must be my namesake, Silena Beauregard.
"Come on, you know it's true!"
"I am not, nor have I ever been, in love with Percy Jackson."
"You guys would be way cute! The perfect couple!"
"Please, his head is full of kelp." If you looked closely though, my mom's face was reddening. "I don't call him Seaweed Brain 'cuz he's such a brainiac, now do I?"
"Doesn't matter! I'm still rooting for Percabeth."
"Percabeth?" My mom asked incredulously.
"Yeah! Percy + Annabeth! Percabeth!"
"That's one of the stupidest things I've ever heard." But she was smiling a little.
"Ha! Your smiling!"
"Because what you're saying is so ridiculous!" She defended.
"Admit it, Annabeth! You like Percy!"
"No! Besides Silena, we're about to go into a major war. With the TITANS. Now is not exactly the best time to start a relationship."
"Charlie and I did."
"Well, but you and Beckendorf won't...I mean, Percy and I will be..." she sighed. "Percy will be in the center of the war. A lot could go wrong."
"Him and Charlie are on a mission now. A lot could go wrong, but I know I love Beckendorf and I know he'll do everything to make it back."
"What if he doesn't make it back?"
"I...I don't know, but I know it's worth a chance."
I saw my mom's jaw clench and in the distance a conch horn blew. My mother turned too the sound. "They're back!"
The camera cut out.
Next was flashes of the battle in Manhattan. Each seemed more deadly than the one before it.
Next was my mother and my father sitting on the picnic bench. You saw my father speak, my mother laugh and then throw her arms around his neck and kiss him. The area lit up and someone shouted, "Well, it's about time!" Campers ran up and hoisted them on their shoulders.
"Oh come on!" My father complained. "Is there no privacy?"
"The lovebirds need to cool off!"
"The canoe lake!"
They cheered and carried my parents, who were still holding hands, to the lake. Both their faces were red. Then they were dumped in the lake. For a while, the rest of the campers just stood there. Someone coughed.
"They gonna come up?" One questioned.
"I don't know," another answered.
"Percy is a son of Poseidon." A different person said. The entire bunch of campers seemed to be chattering.
"Guess we hadn't thought of that."
"How long do you think they'll be?"
"I wonder what they're doing."
"Oh, I have a good idea what their doing."
"Should we wait?"
After a few minutes, the campers gave up and left.
Next was a shot of my parents sitting at the lake. My mom was resting her head on my fathers shoulders.
Next they were talking, sitting side by side, hands intertwined.
The next video had the two of them sitting at a campfire. After a moment everyone stood and began leaving. For a while my parents walked together, hand in hand, with my mother leaning on my father. When they neared the cabins, they came together for a short kiss before my father jogged over to his cabin.
Then it was daylight again. The film was of a huge commotion in front of one of the cabins. Due to it's design, I assumed it was my fathers. On the porch you could see my mom talking to Chiron. He said something and my moms eyes went wide. She shook her head, but Chiron spoke again. My mom covered her mouth with her hand, her eyes filled with to the brim with tears. Then, in front of what seemed to be the entire camp, collapsed to her knees sobbing. Chiron looked down at her sympathetically, then turned to the crowd.
"I regret to inform you all that, as of right now, the hero Percy Jackson is to be considered missing."
Shouts, gasps, and quiet sobs filled the area. Chiron tried to hush them and continued speaking.
"We will send search parties out immediately. We do not know what has happened to him, but we will find out. Now, please, return to your usual activities." After a pause, the camp reluctantly began to do so. I saw Chiron hold a hand out to my mother, but she shoved it away and ran to her cabin.
Next was of Jason, Piper, Leo, my mom, and another crash landing in the lake.
A shot of the seven talking. I assumed it was after the second Great Prophecy.
Then a few more random videos of just my parents and my parents with friends.
Next was a short snippet of their wedding, taken years later.
Next seemed to be taken years after their wedding, because my mom was pregnant with me.
Then there were shots of me as a child. Me crawling, me walking. My five different birthday parties, in almost every video my parents told me they loved me.
After that, the clips were over, and my moms face appeared.
"I'm not sure what this will do for you, but I hope, in some way, it'll help. We love you so much, Silena. I know you'll be a great hero." I swallowed.
"Annabeth, what are you doing?" I heard my dad ask in the background.
My mom turned around, startled. "Percy, I thought you had gone out?"
"I had," he agreed. "I'm back now," he said with that 'duh' tone.
"Oh," my mom seemed flustered. "I'm, well, I'm making a video for Silena."
My dad came into view with a smile. "Oh." He leaned down by my mom. "Hi, Silena. We love you so much, my little Dolphin."
My mom looked up and smiled at my dad, and he smiled back. I paused the video and just left it like that.
For a while, I just stared at that. Their affection for each other was so evident, even after all those years.
I then turned my attention to the letters.